For years, the Toronto Raptors have been tangled up in countless trade rumors around the NBA. From OG Anunoby to the now-gone Fred VanVleet, the league has kept tabs on their stars for quite a while now.
Perhaps, no player has been involved in more rumors than Pascal Siakam. He’s older than most, and his skill set could be a perfect fit for multiple contenders, so that’s not much of a surprise.
Notably, it seems like the Raptors are finally considering moving on from him. However, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, his reluctance to sign a contract extension could be an issue.
Pascal Siakam Doesn’t Want To Sign An Extension
(via The Athletic)
“This will be Siakam’s eighth NBA season, so he can sign for 30 percent of the salary cap either now via extension or next offseason as a free agent with the Raptors or any other franchise. The Raptors are eligible to sign Siakam to a maximum contract extension of four years and at least $192 million. Thus far, there have been no substantive conversations surrounding an extension, league sources involved in the discussions who are not authorized to speak publicly tell The Athletic. And for Siakam’s part, the two-way stalwart has never requested to be traded, those sources added.
Several teams have shown interest in pursuing Siakam via trade over the past three months, but the external market has been tempered a bit due to the fact that it’s been made clear, league sources say, that Siakam would not extend with a team that trades for him. Still, the Atlanta Hawks have been the strongest suitor for Siakam, and talks between them and Toronto were fluid and ongoing as recently as Las Vegas Summer League in July.”
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There’s no denying that the Atlanta Hawks — and several other teams, for what it’s worth — could benefit drastically from trading for him, but it might be a huge risk if he won’t commit for the long run.
